dchopper and has
taught him to take care of himself.

If you desire to become a good woodsman, the first and most important
thing is to learn to use an axe. Patent folding hatchets are well
enough in their way, but for real woodchopping an axe is the only
thing. One of four pounds is about the right weight for a beginner. As
it comes from the store, the edge will be far too thick and clumsy to
do good work. First have it carefully ground by an expert and watch
how he does it.

If I were a country boy I should be more proud of skilful axemanship
than to be pitcher on the village nine. With a good axe, a good rifle,
and a good knife, a man can take care of himself in the woods for
days, and the axe is more important even than the rifle.

The easiest way to learn to be an axeman is to make the acquaintance
of some woodchopper in your neighbourhood. But let me warn you. Never
ask him to lend you his axe. You would not be friends very long if you
did. You must have one of your own, and let it be like your watch or
your toothbrush, your own personal property.

A cheap axe is poor economy. The brightest paint and the gaudiest
labels do not always mean the best steel. Your friend the woodchopper
will tell you what kind to buy in your neighbourhood. The handle
should be straight-grained hickory and before buying it you will run
your eye along it to see that the helve is not warped or twisted and
that there are no knots or bad places in it. The hang of an axe is the
way the handle or helve is fitted to the head. An expert woodchopper
is rarely satisfied with the heft of an axe as it comes from the
store. He prefers to hang his own. In fact, most woodchoppers prefer
to make their own axe handles.

You will need a stone to keep a keen edge on the axe. No one can do
good work with a dull blade, and an edge that has been nicked by
chopping into the ground or hitting a stone is absolutely inexcusable.

To chop a tree, first be sure that the owner is willing to have it
chopped. Then decide in which direction you wish it to fall. This will
be determined by the kind of ground, closeness of other trees, and the
presence of brush or undergrowth. When a tree has fallen the
woodchopper's work has only begun. He must chop off the branches, cut
and split the main trunk, and either make sawlogs or cordwood lengths.
Hence the importance of obtaining a good lie for the tree.

Before beginning to chop the tree, cut away all the brush, vine